Iraqi Last Names

These Iraqi last names cover tribal, city, trade and lineage names from across Iraq, listed A to Z with their Arabic script and meanings. Many describe where a family came from, so a name like al-Mosuli or al-Basri points straight to a city.

208 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

al-Abadi العبادي

Arab tribal name; possibly of the Ibad of al-Hira
Aboona أبونا

Our father, priest; Chaldean family name
al-Alawi العلوي

Descendant of Ali
Allawi علاوي

Of Ali; Baghdad Shia merchant family
al-Alusi الآلوسي

From Alus on the Euphrates; scholarly family
al-Amadi العمادي

From Amadiya in Kurdistan
al-Anbari الأنباري

Place-based name: from Anbar
al-Ani العاني

From Anah on the Euphrates
al-Ansari الأنصاري

Descendant of the Ansar of Medina
Arabo عربو

Chaldean family name
al-Araji الأعرجي

Descendant of al-Araj, a sayyid lineage
al-Asadi الأسدي

Of the Banu Asad tribe
al-Askari العسكري

The soldier; also of Samarra
al-Attar العطار

The perfumer or herbalist
al-Azami الأعظمي

From Adhamiya, Baghdad
al-Azzawi العزاوي

Of the Azza, an Arab tribe of Diyala

B

Baban بابان

Of the Baban, Kurdish ruling dynasty
al-Baghdadi البغدادي

Place-based name: from Baghdad
al-Bahadli البهادلي

Of the Bahadil tribe of Maysan
Bahr al-Ulum بحر العلوم

Sea of knowledge; Najaf clerical family
al-Bakr البكر

Of the Bakr clan; bakr, young camel
Barzani بارزاني

From Barzan; Kurdish tribal leadership family
al-Basri البصري

Place-based name: from Basra
al-Bayati البياتي

Of the Bayat, a Turkmen tribe of Iraq
al-Bazzaz البزاز

The cloth merchant
al-Bdairi البديري

Of the Bdair tribe of Diwaniyah
Behnam بهنام

After Saint Behnam; Syriac Christian name
Benyamin بنيامين

Benjamin; Assyrian family name
Bradosti برادوستي

Of the Bradost, a Kurdish tribe

C

Chalabi الجلبي

Gentleman; old Baghdad merchant family, Turkish origin

D

al-Dabbagh الدباغ

The tanner; Mosul and Baghdad family
al-Daghistani الداغستاني

From Daghestan; Baghdad military family
al-Dahhan الدهان

The painter or oil seller
al-Damluji الدملوجي

Mosul notable family
Denha دنحا

Epiphany; Assyrian and Chaldean name
Doski دوسكي

Of the Doski, a Kurdish tribe of Duhok
al-Dujaili الدجيلي

Place-based name: from Dujail
al-Dulaimi الدليمي

Of the Dulaim, the great tribe of Anbar
al-Duri الدوري

From al-Dour near Tikrit

E

al-Erbili الأربيلي

Place-based name: from Erbil
Eshaya إشعيا

Isaiah; Assyrian family name

F

al-Fahdawi الفهداوي

Of the Albu Fahd, a Dulaim clan
al-Falluji الفلوجي

Place-based name: from Fallujah
al-Fatlawi الفتلاوي

Of the Fatla tribe of the middle Euphrates
al-Fayyadh الفياض

The abundant, generous

G

al-Gailani الكيلاني

Descendants of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Gilani
Gewargis كيوركيس

George; Assyrian family name

H

al-Haddad الحداد

The blacksmith; occupational name
Hadid حديد

Iron; Mosul family
al-Hadithi الحديثي

Place-based name: from Haditha
al-Hafidh الحافظ

One who memorised the Quran
al-Haidari الحيدري

Of Haidar; Baghdad religious family
al-Hakim الحكيم

The wise; Shia clerical family of Najaf
al-Halbousi الحلبوسي

Of the Halabsa, a Dulaim clan
al-Hamdani الحمداني

Of the Hamdan tribe
Hanna حنا

John; Christian family name
al-Hashimi الهاشمي

Descendant of Hashim, the Prophet's clan
al-Hasnawi الحسناوي

Of the Hasnawi clan
al-Hassani الحسني

Descendant of Imam Hassan
Hawrami هورامي

From Hawraman, Kurdish mountain region
al-Hayali الحيالي

Mosul family name of uncertain origin
Herki هركي

Of the Herki, a Kurdish tribe
al-Hilali الهلالي

Of the Banu Hilal tribe
al-Hilli الحلي

Place-based name: from Hilla
al-Hiti الهيتي

From Hit on the Euphrates
Hormiz هرمز

After Saint Hormizd; Chaldean name
al-Husseini الحسيني

Descendant of Imam Hussein

I

al-Ibrahimi الإبراهيمي

Of Ibrahim; sayyid lineage
Isho إيشو

Jesus; Assyrian family name
al-Issawi العيساوي

Of the Albu Issa, a Dulaim clan

J

al-Jaafari الجعفري

Of Jafar; follower of Imam Jafar al-Sadiq
al-Jabiri الجابري

Of the Jabir clan
Jaderji الجادرجي

Tent-maker; Baghdad family
Jaff جاف

Of the Jaff, a large Kurdish tribe
Jajjo ججو

Chaldean family name
al-Jamali الجمالي

The camel driver; or of beauty
Jammo جمو

Chaldean family name
al-Janabi الجنابي

Of the Janabat, a tribe south of Baghdad
al-Jawahiri الجواهري

The jeweller; Najaf literary family
al-Jazairi الجزائري

From the Jazira or marsh islands; Shia family
al-Jubouri الجبوري

Of the Jubur, a large Sunni and Shia Arab tribe
al-Jumaili الجميلي

Of the Jumaila tribe of Anbar

K

al-Kaabi الكعبي

Of the Bani Kaab tribe
al-Kadhimi الكاظمي

From Kadhimiya; of Imam Musa al-Kadhim
Kakai كاكائي

Of the Kaka'i religious community
Kanna كنا

Chaldean family name
al-Karbalai الكربلائي

Place-based name: from Karbala
al-Karbouli الكربولي

Of the Albu Karbul, a Dulaim clan
al-Karkhi الكرخي

From Karkh, west Baghdad
Kashif al-Ghita كاشف الغطاء

Remover of the veil; Najaf clerical family
Kattoula كتولة

Chaldean family name
al-Khafaji الخفاجي

Of the Khafaja, an Arab tribe of the Euphrates
al-Khalidi الخالدي

Of Khalid; of the Khawalid tribe
al-Khalisi الخالصي

From al-Khalis; Shia clerical family
al-Kharbit الخربيط

Dulaim sheikhly family
al-Khatib الخطيب

The preacher; occupational name
al-Khayat الخياط

The tailor; occupational name
al-Khazali الخزعلي

Of the Khazal clan of the south
al-Khazraji الخزرجي

Of the Khazraj tribe of Medina
al-Khoei الخوئي

From Khoy; Shia clerical family of Najaf
Khoshaba خوشابا

Sunday; Assyrian family name
al-Khudhairi الخضيري

Baghdad family; of Khudhair
al-Kinani الكناني

Of the Kinana tribe
al-Kirkuki الكركوكي

Place-based name: from Kirkuk
al-Kubaisi الكبيسي

From Kubaisa in Anbar
Kubba كبة

Baghdad merchant family
al-Kurdi الكردي

The Kurd; of Kurdish origin

L

al-Lami اللامي

Of the Bani Lam tribe of Maysan

M

al-Madfai المدفعي

The artilleryman; Baghdad family
al-Mafraji المفرجي

Of the Mafarja tribe
al-Mahdawi المهداوي

Of the Mahdi clan
al-Majid المجيد

The glorious; Tikriti clan
Makiya مكية

Baghdad family; of Mecca
al-Maliki المالكي

Of the Bani Malik tribe
al-Mandalawi المندلاوي

From Mandali in Diyala
al-Mashhadani المشهداني

Of the Mashahda tribe north of Baghdad
al-Mayahi المياحي

Of the Mayah tribe of southern Iraq
Mikhael ميخائيل

Michael; Christian family name
Mizuri ميزوري

Of the Mizuri, a Kurdish tribe
al-Mohammadawi المحمداوي

Of the Al Mohammad tribe of the marshes
al-Mosuli الموصلي

Place-based name: from Mosul
al-Mufti المفتي

Issuer of fatwas; religious family
al-Muhandis المهندس

The engineer; occupational name
al-Mulla الملا

The religious scholar
al-Musawi الموسوي

Descendant of Imam Musa al-Kadhim
al-Mutlaq المطلك

Of the Mutlaq family; freed

N

Naftchi نفطچي

Oil seller; Turkmen family of Kirkuk
al-Najafi النجفي

Place-based name: from Najaf
al-Najjar النجار

The carpenter; occupational name
al-Naqib النقيب

Chief of the sayyids; Baghdad and Basra family
al-Naqshbandi النقشبندي

Of the Naqshbandi Sufi order
al-Nasiri الناصري

From Nasiriyah; or of Nasir
al-Nasrawi النصراوي

Of the Nasrawi clan of the south
Nissan نيسان

April; Assyrian family name
al-Nuaimi النعيمي

Of the Nuaim tribe
al-Nujaifi النجيفي

Prominent Mosul landowning family

O

al-Obeidi العبيدي

Of the Obeid, an Arab tribe of northern Iraq
Odisho أوديشو

Servant of Jesus; Assyrian family name
Oraha أوراها

Abraham; Assyrian family name

P

Pachachi الباججي

Baghdad family; seller of sheep's-head soup

Q

al-Qaisi القيسي

Of the Qays tribes
al-Qaragholi القرغولي

Of the Qaraghol tribe south of Baghdad
al-Qassab القصاب

The butcher; occupational name
al-Qazzaz القزاز

The silk merchant
al-Qurashi القرشي

Of the Quraysh tribe

R

al-Rawi الراوي

From Rawa on the Euphrates
Rekani ريكاني

Of the Rekan, a Kurdish tribe
al-Rifai الرفاعي

Of the Rifai Sufi order
al-Rikabi الركابي

Of the Rikab clan
al-Rubaie الربيعي

Of the Rabia, an ancient Arab tribe
al-Rusafi الرصافي

From Rusafa, east Baghdad

S

al-Saadi السعدي

Of the Banu Saad; fortunate
Saatchi ساعتچي

Watchmaker; Baghdad Jewish-origin family
al-Sadr الصدر

The chest, foremost; Shia clerical family
al-Saffar الصفار

The coppersmith; occupational name
al-Said السعيد

The fortunate, happy one
Sako ساكو

Chaldean family name
al-Samarrai السامرائي

Place-based name: from Samarra
al-Sarraf الصراف

The money changer
al-Sayegh الصائغ

The goldsmith; occupational name
al-Sayyab السياب

Basra family of poet Badr Shakir
al-Shabibi الشبيبي

Najaf literary family
al-Shahristani الشهرستاني

From Shahristan; Karbala clerical family
al-Shaibani الشيباني

Of the Banu Shayban tribe
al-Shammari الشمري

Of the Shammar, a major Bedouin tribal confederation
Shammas شماس

Deacon; Christian family name
al-Shawi الشاوي

Of the Shawi, shepherd tribes; Baghdad notable family
al-Sheikhly الشيخلي

Of the sheikh, with the Turkish -li suffix; Baghdad family
Shenshal شنشل

Baghdad family name
al-Shibli الشبلي

Of the Shibl clan; lion cub
Shimun شمعون

Simon; Assyrian family name
Shirwani شيرواني

Of the Shirwan, a Kurdish tribe
Shlimon شليمون

Solomon; Assyrian family name
Sindi سندي

Of the Sindi, a Kurdish tribe of Zakho
Sliwa صليوة

Cross; Chaldean and Assyrian family name
al-Sudani السوداني

Of the Al Sudan clan of southern Iraq
al-Sultani السلطاني

Of the sultan
Surchi سورچي

Of the Surchi, a Kurdish tribe
al-Suwaidi السويدي

Baghdad scholarly family

T

al-Tabatabai الطباطبائي

Descendant of Ibrahim Tabataba, Hasanid sayyids
al-Tahan الطحان

The miller; occupational name
al-Tai الطائي

Of the ancient Tayy tribe
Talabani طالباني

From Talaban; Kurdish Qadiri Sufi family
al-Tamimi التميمي

Of the Banu Tamim, a great Arab tribe
Terzi ترزي

Tailor; Turkmen family name
al-Tikriti التكريتي

Place-based name: from Tikrit
Toma توما

Thomas; Christian family name
al-Turkmani التركماني

The Turkmen; of Turkmen origin
Tutunji التتنجي

Tobacco seller; Mosul family

U

al-Umari العمري

Descendant of Caliph Umar; Mosul family

W

al-Waili الوائلي

Of the Banu Wail tribe
Warda وردة

Rose; Assyrian and Chaldean family name
al-Wardi الوردي

The rose seller; family of Ali al-Wardi

Y

Yako ياقو

Jacob; Assyrian family name
Yaldo يلدو

Birth, Christmas; Chaldean family name
al-Yasiri الياسري

Of the Yasiri sayyid clan of the Euphrates
Yonan يونان

Jonah; Assyrian family name
Youkhana يوخنا

John; Assyrian family name
Yousif يوسف

Joseph; common Christian and Muslim family name

Z

al-Zahawi الزهاوي

From Zahaw; Kurdish-origin Baghdad family
Zaia زيا

Assyrian name after Saint Zaia
al-Zaidi الزيدي

Of the Zaid clan; descendant of Zaid
al-Zamili الزاملي

Of the Zamil clan of the south
Zangana زنكنة

Of the Zangana, a Kurdish tribe
Zebari زيباري

Of the Zebar, a Kurdish tribe
al-Zobaie الزوبعي

Of the Zoba tribe west of Baghdad
al-Zubaidi الزبيدي

Of the Zubaid, an ancient Yemeni-origin tribe
al-Zuhairi الزهيري

Of the Zuhair clan

Generate random iraqi surnames

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Results (6)

al-Dahhan

الدهان

The painter or oil seller
al-Zamili

الزاملي

Of the Zamil clan of the south
al-Qaisi

القيسي

Of the Qays tribes
Bahr al-Ulum

بحر العلوم

Sea of knowledge; Najaf clerical family
al-Turkmani

التركماني

The Turkmen; of Turkmen origin
Sako

ساكو

Chaldean family name

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Iraqi last names from cities and towns

A name that ends in -i after a place name usually means from that place. Al-Baghdadi is someone from Baghdad, al-Mosuli from Mosul, al-Basri from Basra, al-Hilli from Hilla and al-Najafi from Najaf. Others come from smaller towns along the Euphrates, such as al-Rawi from Rawa, al-Ani from Anah and al-Hadithi from Haditha. These names were often given when a family moved and needed a way to be identified by neighbours in its new home.

Because such names describe a move, they can be misleading about the present. A family called al-Mosuli may have lived in Baghdad for several generations, and an al-Baghdadi family might live abroad today. Some city names are also shared with people outside Iraq, since cities like Baghdad and Basra drew scholars and merchants from across the region. Treat a place name as a clue about family history rather than as a current address.

Trades, lineage and honorific names

Occupational names are common in Iraqi cities. Al-Haddad means the smith, al-Najjar the carpenter, al-Khayyat the tailor, al-Sarraf the money changer and al-Attar the perfumer or spice seller. These names are shared with families in Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, because the same trades and the same Arabic words were used across the region. They tend to be urban names, while rural families more often carry the name of a tribe.

Some names record descent from the family of the Prophet or from respected religious figures. Al-Hashimi, al-Hussaini and al-Musawi fall into this group, and men of such families may use the title Sayyid before their names. Other names honour a noted ancestor, a scholar or a family office. Tribal names such as al-Tamimi, al-Shammari, al-Zubaidi and al-Khafaji are also widespread and are covered in more detail on the Iraqi generator page.

The three part name and English spellings

An Iraqi official name normally has three parts: a person's own name, the father's name and the grandfather's name, as in Ahmed Ali Hussein. A tribal, city or family name may follow, but in daily life many Iraqis are known by the first two parts. A woman keeps her own father's line after marriage rather than taking her husband's name. This structure means siblings share the same second and third names, while cousins may not.

English spellings vary a great deal. The article al- is written al-, Al, El or dropped entirely, and before letters such as sh, s, t and n it is pronounced as a doubled consonant, so al-Shammari sounds like ash-Shammari. Vowels shift too, so the same name can appear as Jubouri, Juburi or Jabouri. The list uses a common English form, and the Arabic script beside it shows the name as it is written in Iraq.

Frequently asked questions

Why do Iraqi last names often name a city?

When families moved, neighbours often identified them by where they came from, and the description became a family name. Al-Baghdadi means from Baghdad and al-Basri from Basra. The name records an old move and does not always show where a family lives now.

What is the triple name in Iraq?

Official Iraqi names normally list a person's own name, the father's name and the grandfather's name. A tribal or family name may be added at the end. This structure is used on identity documents and helps distinguish people who share common given names.

Why does al-Shammari sound like ash-Shammari?

In Arabic the l of the article al- blends into certain following consonants, known as sun letters. Before sh, s, t, d, n, r and a few others, the l is not pronounced and the next consonant is doubled. The spelling usually keeps al- even though the sound changes.

What does Sayyid mean before a name?

Sayyid is an honorific used by men whose families trace descent from the Prophet Muhammad through his grandsons. It is a title rather than a surname, though families with this lineage often carry names such as al-Hashimi, al-Hussaini or al-Musawi.